Rhys

The drive to the pier felt like a race against a clock that was already ticking toward zero. Every time the car hit a bump in the road, Kayden let out a strangled, high-pitched whimper that made my hands tighten on the steering wheel until the leather groaned.

I could feel the heat radiating off him in waves, and the heavy, sweet scent of orchids beginning to permeate the small space of the car.

It was affecting me too. The way he groaned, the way his orchid scent smelled sweeter and thicker, were too overwhelming for me, and it took all the willpower that I had right there not to stop the car and claim him.

When I finally arrived at the private dock, the Northern Star was waiting. The Northern Star was another yacht I owned—a masterpiece of custom engineering, a hundred-and-ten-foot sleek, silver-hulled motor yacht that looked like a shard of fallen moon against the dark Atlantic water.

As soon as I parked the car, I didn’t wait for the valet. I scooped Kayden into my arms and rushed towards the yacht. His skin was so hot it felt like it was searing through my thin dress shirt.

As I stepped onto the gangway, the crew was already lined up. I had prepared the head stewardess for my arrival, and on sighting me, she bowed her head.

"Mr. Calder, my name is Elena, and we already have the master suite prepped," she whispered, stepping forward to drape a silk-lined blanket over Kayden’s shivering form. "The medical kit and cooling pads are already in the room. I had prepared the ice bath too, and there are other necessities made ready as you have requested."

"Thank you, Elena," I whispered. "Where is the captain?"

A bald-headed man stepped forward and bowed his head. "Mr. Calder, the name is Drew. I am the captain, and it’s my pleasure to serve you."

"Nice to meet you, Drew. Please do start the boat right away."

Drew nodded and then turned around to leave.

I turned my attention to Elena and the rest of the crew. "Please prepare a warm meal, soup preferably. Thank you."

Elena nodded and bowed her head before turning towards the crew and giving them instructions while I walked past them, my boots thudding against the expensive teak decking.

I carried Kayden to the master suite prepared by Elena and the crew. The room was a massive space designed with soft recessed lighting that cast a warm amber glow over the cream-colored silk wallpaper and the custom-built furniture.

At the center of the room sat the bed, an expansive king-sized bed that looked like a cloud of white Egyptian cotton and down.

I laid Kayden on it as gently as I could. The second his back hit the mattress, his body arched forward and a strangled sound tore out from his throat. His fingers grabbed the bed sheets, and he screamed out in pain.

"Rhys... please," he panted, his eyes blown wide, searching the ceiling for a relief that wasn’t coming. "I can’t breathe. I need... I need..." he screamed again, twisting his face in agony. "Please..."

I didn’t know what to do at first. Even though I had prepared for this moment ever since Leo told me, I still didn’t know how to go about it.

Seeing him in pain and being unable to help him broke my heart. "I am sorry," I whispered as I grabbed his hand and rubbed it gently, then I released my soothing pheromones—the little I could—to ease his pain for a moment.

"I am right here, softie. I am right here," I muttered as I gripped his hand tighter.

"Rhys... please," he choked out and then placed his hand on mine. "I need... I can’t..." he fluttered his eyes open, and when they met mine, I saw the lust in them. "Please, just touch me," he begged.

In the blink of an eye, his trembling hand was wrapped behind my coat, and he pulled me down to him.

He wanted me. I could smell his lust, and it was growing every second.

Kayden leaned closer to me and then started kissing my face, down to my throat, then to my chest. "I am burning. Please just touch me," his voice was lower now, filled with desires that were so hard to ignore.

His words, the way his hands were starting to touch under my shirt, were getting to me. I had stopped releasing my pheromones, but Kayden was still releasing his in an overwhelming amount that made my head spin.

"Touch me," he whispered against my ear and then he kissed it, bit it, then kissed the side of my face. "Touch me, Rhys, please," he begged.

I wanted to. I mean, I was tempted to pin him down on that bed and take him, but he was still in pain. Even though the only way to ease his pain right there was to mark and claim him as mine, I still wanted him to be in the right mind.

I caught his wrists and pushed him back to the bed gently, then pinned his hands above his head. My heart pounded hard against my chest as our eyes met, the alpha in me roaring at the urge to take him right there, but I forced my muscles to stay still.

"Kayden, listen to me. As much as I do want to take you right now, I can’t because you are not in your right mind."

Kayden blinked, a tear escaping and trailing down into his hair. "Why? Rhys, this hurts so much. Can’t you help me ease the pain?"

"I know it hurts, softie," I whispered, leaning down until my nose brushed against his, though I kept my lips away from his. "But this isn’t normal heat. Your body is overwhelmed from years of those pills. You are in pain, and like I said earlier, you are not in your right mind. I am not going to take advantage of you when you are hurting like this. I can’t do that to you."

"I want you," he whimpered, arching his back as a fresh wave of cramps rolled through him. "This is the fastest way to get rid of the heat. Just fuck me, damn it, Rhys!"

I heaved a deep sigh. This wasn’t going to be easy, especially since Kayden was trying so hard to break free from my hold on him, and I didn’t want to overpower him.

"I want to make love to you, Kayden. It’s been killing me that I am unable to," I admitted, my voice rough with the truth of it, "but tonight, all I am going to do is take care of you. I will make sure you survive this heat without me sleeping with you, so please believe in me, Kayden."

Kayden whimpered in pain, more tears streaming down his face, then he nodded in response. "Alright... alright... I trust you."

I let go of his wrists, trusting in his words, and lifted him from the bed. His body was burning so hot that it felt like a furnace against my chest. I carried him towards the master ensuite where Elena had already prepared the ice bath.

When I reached it, I stripped him completely, peeling away the rest of his damp clothes until he was stark naked, then I lowered him into the tub, and the second his skin hit the ice-cold water, Kayden let out a sharp, gasping scream that echoed off the marble walls.

"Breathe, Kayden! Just breathe through the shock. I am right here with you," I whispered into his ear.

He thrashed for a second, his teeth chattering so hard I thought they might crack, but the ice was necessary to blunt the inflammation of a five-year-long suppression.

"I am going to join you now," I told him and then stripped out of my own clothes, tossing them onto the floor, and climbed into the tub behind him.

The shock of the cold hit me hard, stealing my breath, but I didn’t flinch. My bandaged shoulder was soaked immediately, and I winced as my ribs connected with the edge of the tub, but I waved off the pain as I pulled Kayden back against my chest, my legs tangling with his under the frigid water. Then I wrapped my arms around his waist, pinning him to me so he could feel my beating heart.

"I’ve got you," I kissed the top of his head. "I won’t let you go through this alone," I muttered and closed my eyes, focusing to release another round of my soothing pheromones.

Kayden’s head fell back against my shoulder. His frantic gasps slowed as he inhaled my scent. Under the surface, I gripped his hands, my thumbs running over his knuckles to keep him anchored.

"How are you feeling?" I asked him.

"It’s cold... cold," he whimpered, his body finally beginning to go limp against mine. "I don’t want... want to experience this ever again, Rhys. I..."

I wrapped my hands around his abdomen and softly pressed my hand against it, massaging it in the way I could. "I wish I could take your pain away, but I can’t. But this will be the last time you will ever experience this kind of pain. I will make sure it never happens again."